Glossary
Key terms and concepts used throughout kernl.
Agent
A configured LLM with instructions, tools, and memory settings. Agents are stateless — they define behavior but don’t hold conversation state.
Thread
A single execution of an agent. Contains message history, tool calls, and state. Threads are the unit of persistence and can be resumed.
Memory
Knowledge that persists beyond individual threads. Can be created, searched, and updated by agents or manually.
Toolkit
A collection of related tools that can be attached to an agent. Tools are functions the LLM can call to take actions.
Namespace
A logical partition for isolating threads and memories. Useful for multi-tenant applications.
Context
Runtime data passed into an agent’s execution — user info, session state, or any data your agent needs access to.